Lisa Borg Dip DCNH, Nutritional Therapist – Lisa is a qualified Nutritional Therapist. She has been practicing nutrition for 8 years across a broad spectrum of health conditions. She has a special interest in Rosacea, and her research, together with hands-on experience, led to the writing of her thesis entitled “The Nutritional Management of Rosacea”. This blog covers foods to avoid)
This week I want to give you some specifics on foods to avoid. It is also important that you know how to replace those foods with. I am going to start with the top seven foods to avoid if you have Rosacea, and give my suggested replacements. They are as follows:
Rosacea Foods To Avoid:
1. Avoid: Processed Sugar and Artificial Sweeteners (any packaged food that has either sugar, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), glucose-fructose-syrup, sucrose, maltose, fructose or fruit concentrate as an ingredient). Sweeteners come under many names such as Aspartame, Splenda, Canderel, NutraSweet, Neotame, Acesulfame potassium, Sweet’N Low, Equal, & Saccharin.
These commonly appear in ‘diet’ foods and drinks as well as ‘low fat’ ‘low sugar’ and ‘low calorie’ foods and drinks. Replace With: coconut water (juices), Manuka honey, Lo Han Guo (other spelling is Luo Han Kuo but it may be difficult to find) or Stevia (natural sweetener but do not choose Truvia). Pure glucose (dextrose) is another sugar substitute for those not wanting to lose weight, but I do not advise it for the Rosacea sufferer.
2. Avoid: GMO foods (genetically modified organisms) especially soy, corn, rapeseed, wheat and their derivatives like canola oil, corn syrup, and non-organic soy. Replace With: Natural non-GMO foods (check labels)
3. Avoid: Conventional Dairy products from Cow’s. Replace With: Almond Milk, Coconut Milk, Rice Milk or with Raw milk products from Goat’s or Sheep if you are not intolerant to dairy.
4. Avoid: Hydrogenated Oils (especially vegetable and seed oils in clear plastic bottles!) Replace With: Coconut Oil, Butter or Ghee for cooking, Olive Oil for dressings.
5. Avoid: Non-organic fruits especially apples, peaches, nectarines, pears, grapes, strawberries, raspberries and cherries. Also avoid some non-organic vegetables such as potatoes, spinach, lettuce, and bell peppers. Replace With: Other fruits and vegetables or if listed above, insist on organic only.
6. Avoid: Gluten (wheat, rye, barley and most oats unless the label states gluten-free) Replace With: Almond Flour, Coconut Flour and rice flour products. Bread made from flax, pea, quinoa, buckwheat and rice are good alternatives if you insist on eating bread.
7. Avoid: Commercial Meats and Poultry / Processed Meats such as luncheon meats. Replace With: Grass-fed, Free Range meats / poultry. Organic where possible. There are other foods/drinks you should avoid, but the above are the main contributors to ill-health and chronic inflammation. Begin by replacing one or two of the above and work your way down the list over time.
It may seem daunting and even impossible at a first glance, but it is achievable if you take it step by step. Your family will also benefit from following the same rules, so you will not have to have separate shopping lists. To avoid the pitfalls of eating the above foods ‘by accident’, or because you have to eat what is available, I highly recommend you plan your weekly meals ahead. This one factor appears to play a significant role in success.
It is commonly discovered upon Laboratory Testing that those with Rosacea have food intolerances.Some foods that are considered healthy may be in this category. I highly recommend you have your Health Profiles assessed to determine if there is any possibility that you have an intolerance to everyday foods and to arrange testing if necessary. You can contact me by email, and I will create a client login on my website for you and guide you as to how to access and complete two questionnaires. I can then perform an analysis of your responses and advise according to your personal case.
I suggest you eat both cooked and raw vegetables on a daily basis, with high quality protein such as meat, poultry or fish (especially oily fish like sardines and salmon. Salmon should be organic or wild caught only – avoid all farmed fish).
Poached, soft-boiled or lightly scrambled organic eggs make a wholesome and healthy breakfast. For the Rosacea sufferer, it is important to pay close attention to your digestive system (covered in previous weekly newsletters). For this reason, it is also vital for you to know that digestion begins in the mouth. Please make every effort to form the habit of chewing your food thoroughly and in a relaxed manner to promote healthy digestion. Avoid eating when stressed as the digestive processes are shut down to varying degrees when stress is present.
If you have any digestive issues, I urge you to contact me by email in order that I guide you through a personal analysis procedure to determine if your digestive system is in need of clinical attention.
This Week’s Quote:
“Food is your body’s fuel. Without fuel, your body wants to shut down.”
Ken Hill
If you would like further information about Rosacea, please visit our Rosacea Treatments Page
Contact Us:
If you would like to book a free Rosacea Nutritional Consultation and foods to avoid, please ring 0207 523 5158 or e-mail [email protected]. We are open Monday – Saturday, 10 am – 6 pm
